In Les Miserables, Victor Hugo argues that mistakes do not define individuals and, therefore, forgiveness must be a part of society and law.
Forgiveness: "Stop feeling angry or resentful toward (someone) for an offense, flaw, or mistake"
Explanation
Hugo juxtaposes two characters with two views on forgiveness in society to prove his claim: Jean val Jean, the embodiment of mercy, compassion, and forgiveness, and Inspector Javert, the embodiment of justice, legalism, and punishment. The embodiment of forgiveness starts the story as a bread thief breaking parole. A bishop shows him unexpected mercy with a bed for the night and several valuable silver candles to get him on his feet. The Bishop forgave val Jean, and for the rest of the story, val Jean will continue to pass on this forgiveness, proving that he deserves it. A criminal does not stay criminal for life. He gives a former prostitute, Fantine, refuge after she was fired and became sick, showing heroism and nobility. val Jean believes all deserve a change to "start with a clean slate" (Hugo), just like he had the chance to. The Bishop's gift of forgiveness allowed him to reform from his former bread stealing self into the benevolent mayor of small town. val Jean understands people can change, so gives Fantine the same chance, through forgiveness. He even tries to let his arch nemesis, Inspector Javert, learn and reform from his mistake (accusing val Jean out of revenge), ordering "you [him] to forgive yourself [himself]" (Hugo). Unlike Fantine and val Jean himself, however, Hugo's embodiment of justice does not accept the forgiveness and reform for his mistake of revenge. His character shows the opposing position and it's destruction. val Jean believes criminals deserve no forgiveness, and this belief destroys him. Mistakes tarnish one forever according to his law, "men like you [val Jean] can never change" (Hugo). His obsession with revenge against val Jean for his one mistake, which he believes is justice, literally kills him as he confesses trying to "live my [his] life without breaking a single rule" (Hugo) at the story's end. Forgiveness could have saved the inspector, but society has no room for forgiveness. The law states rule breakers must be punished for life and Javert lived in fear of the law his whole life in the disguise of enforcing it. The law's 'justice' kills even those who enforce it. Had the Bishop not found val Jean and shown forgiveness, the law's vengeance would have killed him too; the french soldiers would have taken him right back to death at the work camp. Without val Jean's forgiveness, the laws' lack of forgiveness would have doomed Cassette to slavery. Her mother, an unworthy prostitute, could never have bought her freedom back. The law's relentlessness kills Fantine, just like it kills Javert; she symbolically dies rights as Javert enters the room as he says "my duty is to the law" (Hugo). Law is founded upon the mistaken belief that one criminal act define individuals. Hugo's story shows how lack of forgiveness, commonly called justice, destroys both it's enforcers and those it is designed to protect: all humans.
Light
Hugo symbolizes the powerful passing of forgiveness through light, such as from the Bishop's candles. When the bishop buys val Jean's soul "back to god" so he "no longer belongs to evil" (Hugo), he symbolically buys his soul back to the light with silver candles, emitters of light. Additionally, the previous night when val Jean needed refuge, the only light on in the town was the light outside the Bishop's house. The Bishop passes this forgiving light to val Jean through the candles. Throughout the story, scenes of forgiveness take place in the light and scenes of revenge take place in darkness. The climax of Javert's pursuit of val Jean takes place inside the dark sewers below Paris. When Javert attempts to kill val Jean behind the revolutionary's defense line at night, val Jean takes him beneath a solitary street light to spare him as he fires the gun into the air. The film's director strategically uses lighting to continue Hugo's light vs dark, forgiveness vs revenge imagery.
Connections to ATOTC
Just like Hugo, Dickens claims a fundamental pattern in how society is structured is a lack of forgiveness, called justice. Furthermore, both storytellers agree that societies continue to structure themselves around revenge over and over. val Jean states how the "world never changes" (Hugo), just a Carton sees "the evil of this time and of the previous time of which this is the natural birth" (Dickens). Both stories juxtapose characters who embody forgiveness revenge to explain this pattern. Madame Defarge and Inspector Javert both believe once an individual has committed a crime, they are criminal for life, and both of their belief's destroy them in the end. Both Carton and val Jean juxtapose these beliefs respectively, and they return forgiveness and compassion which is shown to them. Both storytellers portray their forgivers as heroes, thereby making the true enemy of their stories revenge. Revenge in Hugo's tale kills Javert and Fantine, causes val Jean to live a life of fear and to impose that fear upon Cassette. Likewise, revenge in Dickens's novel kills Madame Defarge and Sydney Carton, and causes Charles Darnay to live a life of fear. Hugo and Dickens both see revenge as a plague on society in the disguise of justice and believe that forgiveness must play a stronger role.
Connections to Modern Media
Disney Pixar's movie Inside Out portrays the complicated emotions behind one's actions as characters to explain the nature of forgiveness. The 'main character,' Riley, is a growing teenager forced to move away from home to San Francisco. The move causes turmoil among Riley's characterized emotions: joy, sadness, disgust, fear, and anger. While joy struggles to cope with sadness, fear, disgust and anger take control of her outer personality and her actions become irritable. She pouts at the dinner table, angering her father, who like all humans, reacts to punish unwanted actions. He "makes a show of force" and "puts the foot down," sending Riley to her room. Once could say that he disrupted the family dinner by administering justice for Riley's crime. Riley's fear and anger reach a climax when she runs away from home by bus, feeling lost and aimless. However, joy and sadness finally reach an understanding in her mind and Riley runs home to the arms of her parents, admitting her horrible mistake and begging for their forgiveness. Sadness takes momentary control and forgiveness takes place. Her parents too admit their recent actions have been atypical due to inner sadness and therefore understand her failure to behave properly. Inside Out shows viewers that this sadness within everyone is what makes people human; without it, individuals would not make mistakes, not do wrong, and most importantly, not forgive. The movie shows that everyone deserves forgiveness and compassion for mistakes because, try as one might to act perfectly pure, sadness trips all who are human and all deserve forgiveness for it, not punishment. Inside Out's message on forgiveness mirrors that of Les Miserables. Inspector Javert attempts to act pure and does not let the sadness of his failure lead to self-forgiveness; his inability to forgive kills him. On the contrary, val Jean's ability to understand the sadness of others, such as that in Fantine, enables him to act as the story's hero. Driven by a sad past, val Jean understands that one irrational action, such as pouting at the dinner table or stealing a loaf of bread, do not define the entirety of a person. All individuals have the joy, sadness, disgust, fear, and anger within them; to forgive is to understand that all these emotions can take control of a person- the few irrational moments of anger, fear, or disgust do not define them. Inside Out explains the psychological principles behind Hugo's philosophy of the necessity of forgiveness.
Forgiveness: "Stop feeling angry or resentful toward (someone) for an offense, flaw, or mistake"
Explanation
Hugo juxtaposes two characters with two views on forgiveness in society to prove his claim: Jean val Jean, the embodiment of mercy, compassion, and forgiveness, and Inspector Javert, the embodiment of justice, legalism, and punishment. The embodiment of forgiveness starts the story as a bread thief breaking parole. A bishop shows him unexpected mercy with a bed for the night and several valuable silver candles to get him on his feet. The Bishop forgave val Jean, and for the rest of the story, val Jean will continue to pass on this forgiveness, proving that he deserves it. A criminal does not stay criminal for life. He gives a former prostitute, Fantine, refuge after she was fired and became sick, showing heroism and nobility. val Jean believes all deserve a change to "start with a clean slate" (Hugo), just like he had the chance to. The Bishop's gift of forgiveness allowed him to reform from his former bread stealing self into the benevolent mayor of small town. val Jean understands people can change, so gives Fantine the same chance, through forgiveness. He even tries to let his arch nemesis, Inspector Javert, learn and reform from his mistake (accusing val Jean out of revenge), ordering "you [him] to forgive yourself [himself]" (Hugo). Unlike Fantine and val Jean himself, however, Hugo's embodiment of justice does not accept the forgiveness and reform for his mistake of revenge. His character shows the opposing position and it's destruction. val Jean believes criminals deserve no forgiveness, and this belief destroys him. Mistakes tarnish one forever according to his law, "men like you [val Jean] can never change" (Hugo). His obsession with revenge against val Jean for his one mistake, which he believes is justice, literally kills him as he confesses trying to "live my [his] life without breaking a single rule" (Hugo) at the story's end. Forgiveness could have saved the inspector, but society has no room for forgiveness. The law states rule breakers must be punished for life and Javert lived in fear of the law his whole life in the disguise of enforcing it. The law's 'justice' kills even those who enforce it. Had the Bishop not found val Jean and shown forgiveness, the law's vengeance would have killed him too; the french soldiers would have taken him right back to death at the work camp. Without val Jean's forgiveness, the laws' lack of forgiveness would have doomed Cassette to slavery. Her mother, an unworthy prostitute, could never have bought her freedom back. The law's relentlessness kills Fantine, just like it kills Javert; she symbolically dies rights as Javert enters the room as he says "my duty is to the law" (Hugo). Law is founded upon the mistaken belief that one criminal act define individuals. Hugo's story shows how lack of forgiveness, commonly called justice, destroys both it's enforcers and those it is designed to protect: all humans.
Light
Hugo symbolizes the powerful passing of forgiveness through light, such as from the Bishop's candles. When the bishop buys val Jean's soul "back to god" so he "no longer belongs to evil" (Hugo), he symbolically buys his soul back to the light with silver candles, emitters of light. Additionally, the previous night when val Jean needed refuge, the only light on in the town was the light outside the Bishop's house. The Bishop passes this forgiving light to val Jean through the candles. Throughout the story, scenes of forgiveness take place in the light and scenes of revenge take place in darkness. The climax of Javert's pursuit of val Jean takes place inside the dark sewers below Paris. When Javert attempts to kill val Jean behind the revolutionary's defense line at night, val Jean takes him beneath a solitary street light to spare him as he fires the gun into the air. The film's director strategically uses lighting to continue Hugo's light vs dark, forgiveness vs revenge imagery.
Just like Hugo, Dickens claims a fundamental pattern in how society is structured is a lack of forgiveness, called justice. Furthermore, both storytellers agree that societies continue to structure themselves around revenge over and over. val Jean states how the "world never changes" (Hugo), just a Carton sees "the evil of this time and of the previous time of which this is the natural birth" (Dickens). Both stories juxtapose characters who embody forgiveness revenge to explain this pattern. Madame Defarge and Inspector Javert both believe once an individual has committed a crime, they are criminal for life, and both of their belief's destroy them in the end. Both Carton and val Jean juxtapose these beliefs respectively, and they return forgiveness and compassion which is shown to them. Both storytellers portray their forgivers as heroes, thereby making the true enemy of their stories revenge. Revenge in Hugo's tale kills Javert and Fantine, causes val Jean to live a life of fear and to impose that fear upon Cassette. Likewise, revenge in Dickens's novel kills Madame Defarge and Sydney Carton, and causes Charles Darnay to live a life of fear. Hugo and Dickens both see revenge as a plague on society in the disguise of justice and believe that forgiveness must play a stronger role.
Connections to Modern Media
Disney Pixar's movie Inside Out portrays the complicated emotions behind one's actions as characters to explain the nature of forgiveness. The 'main character,' Riley, is a growing teenager forced to move away from home to San Francisco. The move causes turmoil among Riley's characterized emotions: joy, sadness, disgust, fear, and anger. While joy struggles to cope with sadness, fear, disgust and anger take control of her outer personality and her actions become irritable. She pouts at the dinner table, angering her father, who like all humans, reacts to punish unwanted actions. He "makes a show of force" and "puts the foot down," sending Riley to her room. Once could say that he disrupted the family dinner by administering justice for Riley's crime. Riley's fear and anger reach a climax when she runs away from home by bus, feeling lost and aimless. However, joy and sadness finally reach an understanding in her mind and Riley runs home to the arms of her parents, admitting her horrible mistake and begging for their forgiveness. Sadness takes momentary control and forgiveness takes place. Her parents too admit their recent actions have been atypical due to inner sadness and therefore understand her failure to behave properly. Inside Out shows viewers that this sadness within everyone is what makes people human; without it, individuals would not make mistakes, not do wrong, and most importantly, not forgive. The movie shows that everyone deserves forgiveness and compassion for mistakes because, try as one might to act perfectly pure, sadness trips all who are human and all deserve forgiveness for it, not punishment. Inside Out's message on forgiveness mirrors that of Les Miserables. Inspector Javert attempts to act pure and does not let the sadness of his failure lead to self-forgiveness; his inability to forgive kills him. On the contrary, val Jean's ability to understand the sadness of others, such as that in Fantine, enables him to act as the story's hero. Driven by a sad past, val Jean understands that one irrational action, such as pouting at the dinner table or stealing a loaf of bread, do not define the entirety of a person. All individuals have the joy, sadness, disgust, fear, and anger within them; to forgive is to understand that all these emotions can take control of a person- the few irrational moments of anger, fear, or disgust do not define them. Inside Out explains the psychological principles behind Hugo's philosophy of the necessity of forgiveness.